Channel Orange

2.5/10 I hate this

Have never listened to him before and I love him! What an artist!

Me gustó, definitivamente hay algo ahí. Seguramente lo escuche de vuelta. No esperaba nada y me dió bastante Nota: 3.7

Kinda liked it but mostly explicit and no clean version to be found

I like Blonde better, but this album is what introduced the world to Frank's sound. To think he got a jump start from Odd Future to now making world classics. The album itself is experimental, but has these ethereal moments.

Ive heard this a ton of times and its always a hit.

Mostly forgettable and unremarkable, with the occasional odd moment and awkward transitions. Some songs sound half-finished, mixed with randomly recorded snippets the producers didn’t know what to do with, so they left them as is. While good art is meant to provoke questions, this album just makes you go “huh?”

cure to insomnia

Real good time listening to this. Pyramid was the top track

A consistently great album - always interesting production - why is Blond not on here

Mazy rubbish masquerading as jazz influence. Early weeknd albums much better in the same vein.

Terrific start to end

Already liked a few songs off this album so was worried the rest wouldn't hold up but was pleasantly surprised that enough of them held the standard. Couple of lame skits but it happens.

Fantastic album

2.5/5

Unlike yesterday's record (Hotel California), I went into this completely blind. A friend had raved about the artist. But apart from 'it's awesome!', he gave nothing away. Frank Ocean sounded like something indie. Also, I was lying on a beach, staring up at the clouds. Not lying exhausted in bed, cursing that I had to give away my time to listen to the The Eagles. What a difference it may have made. So, I was pleasantly surprised when the intro had the Playstation start up music in it. The synths and drum machine entered, and then voice. I like it. The melodies in each song are a bit strange and don't necessarily stick, but this guy is a talented singer. From track 2 and 3, I got a 'The Love Below' vibe. Think Prototype, hip hop sensibilities, but something different. I was then not surprises to see that Andre 3000 himself makes an appearance on the album. The instrumental is what I really like. Nice mixture of orchestral, drum machine and synth. Then, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a cool guitar line at the end of Pyramids. Then! John Mayer turns up on an instrumental track! My track of the album (the one being added to my playlist) is 'Super Rich Kids', a melody that I can't put my finger on. Cool inclusion of rap, nice backing. This isn't something I'd normally listen to. I get the vibe of it being blasted inside a trendy cafe or a boutique clothes store. I like it. However, I wouldn't see myself walking the streets listening to this, soaking everything in, singing along... Perhaps one day. I'll add it to my rotation. 4 Stars Tuesday 22nd July - Album 2/1001

This album is like the moment you sit out on your veranda after a big night out. As a devilish cocktail of beer, rum, negroni, a half eaten kebab and only-God-knows-what-else still courses through your veins, you take a moment to reflect on the evening. Your heart is still pumping at high octane from the activities of the evening, so you take a moment to sit under the night sky and contemplate the night that just played out. While relaxing and watching the clouds drift across the front of a full moon, flashes of the evening streak through your mind as you feel your body calming. “One more negroni” you think to yourself. Not needing more alcohol, you head to your kitchen and slap together a quickly made cocktail, before returning to the veranda. You don’t need the drink, but you have had such an amazing night and this calming time under the night sky is so peaceful, that you simply don’t know why you’d consider going to bed.

I csn see why it's on here but not for me.

chill vibe

Not made for me, but I thought the musical arrangements were good.

This is a bit of a frustrating listen. The instruments (everything non-vocal) are almost impeccably clean, synth-drenched, and harmonically tasty – jazz fans would be proud. Unfortunately, the chill lo-fi-esque sound falls apart when Frank Ocean attempts to add vocals. Because his singing, particularly his melodies, don't mesh with the chords being played. At all. It's almost as if he recorded a freeform vocal line, then composed a completely unrelated electronic mix on a completely different day. The disconnect here makes channel ORANGE hard to legitimately groove with. At a glance, you notice "whoa, perfectly-mixed synths and drums. this sounds crazy cool." and at another glance, you hear the singing and think "hey, this guy's pretty good with his voice." But the two don't go together at all – save for a few tracks like Thinkin Bout You, Lost, and the surprisingly great interlude Fertilizer. Speaking of interludes, though: man, hip-hop artists really didn't learn from the 90s. Interludes break up an album's flow rather than glue it together. Ocean's ones aren't as egregiously jarring as most of his contemporaries, but the album still would've been better without them (or in the case of Fertilizer, it should have been a full-length song). One thing I have to mention is that this guy sounds like Stevie Wonder. The chord progressions, voice quality, and frequent use of keyboards are common elements. But where Wonder shines with catchy melodies, incorporation of big-band textures, and moving lyricism, Ocean completely falls apart. 2/5 Key tracks: Thinkin Bout You, Lost, Bad Religion

This came up, I thought oh wow, this is supposed to be great. I on the other hand think it was ok.

This album has a clunky flow, intermittent vocals, a very thin sound with no real depth or emotion. It is almost as if everyone from Frank to the production team mailed it in to meet a label requirement to put out an album.

favorite song: super rich kids

Ocean Stepping Forward As a whole, this album resembles a resume, rather than a meaningfully cohesive work of art; asking (sometimes desperately) for attention, needy as the narrator of Pyramids. Super Rich Kids By the time the listener lands on this, the 7th track, the catchiness of the refrain is like a drop of water in a disjointed, pathless desert. The lyrics, unfortunately, are too simplistic to be taken as real social commentary - except the rapped verse (Earl Sweatshirt) with its poetically dull-drum under-beat and word play. Ocean’s melodic choices and vocal performance are too sugary to lift the song out of a glorification of the “on the roof” adolescent hell-life presented here. Pyramids Impressively musically cohesive for its length, Pyramids opens beautifully and continually surprises, as the listener is led through a variety of settings, like musical chambers in the metaphoric tomb. Unfortunately, the lyrical metaphors, which the listener has high hopes for, disappoint entirely with surface-level symbolism and sad clique. The song concludes as just another lazy depiction of masculine insecurity and its counterparts - the predation upon and objectification of women. Attempting to deal with a serious, though provocative subject, the lyrical feet here are stuck in the mud of eroticism, diminishing any hope of literary irony. If the point is to disgust, the ending certainly does, but not enough to provide the kind of literary uncomfortableness that would keep this off of a frat boy’s Friday night play list. The narrator’s existence is pastorally depicted with hints at the irony of dichotomy. Even so, there is too much glorification here (again) for the song to be taken as serious social commentary. Lost The only song on the album that doesn’t fail from an over-flex. Allows itself to be as simple as it is. The only song that knows itself to be a bop. White Lovely one-minute interlude featuring the easy-on-the-ears guitar work of John Mayer - but what is it doing on this album? The listener might expect it to act as a scene change, but unfortunately, it does not. End By the time we get here, we’ve had to wade through a swamp of second-half lyrics that continue to lack courage, containing just enough creativity to fool the uninitiated into imagining more exists here than a rehashing of tired themes. Hopefully, Ocean’s lyrical work has matured since ORANGE to match his showcased musical cleverness and promising knack for collaboration.

yay franky 5/5

Not my cup of tea

I like R&B — it’s a genre where I’m easy to please (I’d rank any reasonably good R&B a three, at least). I like the sound and the ethos. But this is just not good. He’s got a nice voice. That’s it — that’s the best i can say. The album is amateurish. His delivery is terrible; forcing the words into the rhythm and lazily mumbling the key words and syllables. The musical backing is simple; the best that a producer with a bunch of Mac music programmers can deliver. Many of the songs are super-repetitive— they need editing (if not complete rewriting). This is a 1. I have no idea how it made the 1001 list, and many of the individual sings are annoying.

Отличный альбом, интересная концепция, хороший голос и звук

I like what he’s trying to do but not how he does it. 2.5

Not for me

really smooth and pleasing sound and great lyrics! Had a good time listening! 7/10

Rather lovely

Fun album which lost me at times with some of the singing near the end. But still, hearing an album start with the og ps music and street fighter 2 was nice for nostalgia.

Very good record and another amazing debut. Flow is killer and lyrics are incredibly well composed. Will keep it in rotation.

Look I know I'm giving this 4* and even I think that's sort of sacrilege. I just slightly prefer Blond and never quite clicked with all of this, but it's importance in shaping modern music can not be overstated. All the cretins in the reviews talking about degeneracy and other racially coded terms to describe this record, we see you, we hear you, and we hate you <3

Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and the like in a more modern context is what Frank Ocean is going for, and this is meant to be a downtempo stream of consciousness series of hits that every hiphop and R&B artist followed up with for the last decade, but man this abum doesn't hit like his influences do.

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it's, you know, fine. It's not quite passive, ambient background music, but it's close. Frank Ocean is an artist I've heard a lot about, but never really sought out. I can see how this is a new direction for R&B, which I appreciate, however it's missing something. Soul? Simmering rage beneath the funk? This album feels very smooth, like there's not much being said. The only time I started to get really into a track - Pyramids - it turns out the thing is 10 damn minutes long and thus loses some steam. That said, I don't hate it. Just didn't register much. Sure do with I could rate half stars, because this is a straight 2.5 - but, it gets the benefit of rounding up.

very new soundscape for the time, but it's been beaten to death in pop now. Favorite track: thinking about you| other picks: super rich kids, sweet life, pyramids, lost

I switched from Megadeath to this. Let’s see how receptive my ears are… If you took away the beats, the ability to spit meaningful rhymes and gave Kanye some sort of sedation, this could pass for one of his albums instead. Nothing blows me away, aside from my choice cut. That’s re-listenable again. Choice cut: Super Rich Kids

Какого только г....а не напихают в список этих 1000 альбомов.

Man the top negative reviews for this album seem slightly racist. Anyway, this album holds a special place in my heart, although I like Blonde slightly more. Frank has one of the best singing voices in modern music and Channel Orange is the proof. The production and instrumentation here shapeshift with each song and as the story (Frank's emotional growth) continues. Super Rich Kids and Pyramids are lauded as two of Frank's best, rightfully so, and the radio hits are popular for a reason (Lost and Thinkin Bout You, respectfully), but the deep cuts here are incredible (Monks, Pilot Jones, Forrest Gump, Crack Rock.... man). Easy 4.5, bumping to 5 because it's my ratings so why the hell not

Tästä ei nyt saanut selkoa, onko tämä laulua, puhetta vai jotain siitä väliltä.

Ei ei ei. Aivan hirveää kuraa. Top3 paskimmat tähän mennessä

En pysty kuuntelemaan tämän tyylistä. Annetaan nyt säälistä ⭐️⭐️kun nuoret sentään yrittävät tehdä jotain uutta.

Kovia nimiä on kyllä lätyllä ollut mutta odotin vähän selkeämpää kokonaisuutta. Albumilla oli hetkensä mutta paikoitellen myös vähän liia än taiteellista kamaa.

Banger after banger. I still hear the electric baseline from Cleopatra in my hand randomly all the time.

Schon banger album

Je l'ai écouté lors d'un trajet d'auto Frelighs-Mtl. Il me semble que c'était quand même un peu mieux que les quelques autres fois que j'ai écouté du Frank Ocean. En raison de l'ambiance sonore de l'auto??

Absolument terrible. Je me suis dit au moins je vais pouvoir m'endormir dessus en revenant du Lac sur la 155S. Non, trop irritant comme musique.

Classique du r&b millenaire, que j’ai du écouter une centaine de fois déjà. Voix doucereuse, beats envoutants, chansons mémorables. Avec en son centre le magnum opus qu’est Pyramids. C’était un beau retour à mes années d’université!

2 not my cup of tea

Not my jam

This is... Not terrible... Certainly not good... It's just... Meh!

This was teetering between a 4 and a 5 but who am I kidding. I have always loved songs from this album (pyramids, lost, pink matter) so its getting the benefit of the doubt.

Really enjoyed this one.

Me pareció un buen álbum, pero con excepción de algunos tracks, me resultó un tanto genérico. Lleva un estilo relajado lo cual hace que su larga duración no se sienta pesada.

Better than expected. I felt like it had a lot more to offer then many if the rnb albums in this list. I did feel like his flow seemed recycled for a few songs but other than that very well rounded as far as style and content.

Maybe someone else find this grating voice and flabby songs entertaining but not me.

I'll be at the pyramids, pyramiiiiids... Honestly, this album was immediately forgettable as a whole. Mid, as the kids say. 5/10

Wasn’t bad

تو قطره‌ای از اقیانوس نیستی، تو تمام اقیانوسی در قطره

Gotta admit, I have heard of Frank Ocean but had never (knowingly) listened to him- I definitely thought he was a punk guy 😂 I didn’t hate this album and I can respect it for being an interesting mix of genres but I can’t say I understand the revolutionary hype. It’s a good album, don’t get me wrong, but it t wasn’t enough to turn me into a fan. Songs I liked enough to add to Spotify: Lost

"Fertilizer, I'll take bullshit if that's all you got." Listened to B4? No Tracks Already Saved on Spotify: 2 - Thinkin Bout You, Lost Standout Tracks: Thinkin Bout You, Sweet Life, Lost. (33/100)

Soft rap. Not terrible. Good voice. But not something I would want to listen to again and again.

The ocean is dynamic and never dull. This guy needs to change his name to stagnant pond to match the quality of these songs.

Didn’t love it, he’s got a good voice a lot of them felt like general grooves rather than songs. Shan’t listen again.

amazing n classic

it’s channel orange

Couldn't even finish it. Made it through Super Rich Kids and had to stop.

Great album

What is this awful shit and why is it in my ears?! Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ (part) Revisit ❌️ Terrible ★☆☆☆☆ I'd do no stars if it was a thing...

Coolio. Crack rock to pyramids is great. Still a lot of fluff in this one compared to Blonde. 8/10

Interesting if not really my genre

Svakalega þétt og góð plata. Plata sem ég taldi vera basic pop á sínum tíma en fattaði fljótlega hvað þetta er mikið meistarastykki. Flakkað milli r&b, popps og rapps. Flottir synthar og skemmtilegar innkomur (Andre3000 í pink matter geggjað). Besta lagið Pyramids.

Þessi kom mér skemmtilega á óvart. Rúllaði alveg frábærlega í gegn, alls konar stílar og ekkert leiðinlegt. Mjög góð tónlistarsjávarsúpa.

Good back in the day. Good now.

This was a treat because this is the album I am most familiar with since I started the project. Interestingly enough I haven’t listened to the whole album in full but it’s totally been on my list. I didn’t realize how experimental this album was and I really dug it. In addition to the songs I already knew, I picked up some more bops.

Great album. Pyramids is one of my all time favorite tracks, and there's plenty of other bangers on there - Serra Leone, Super Rich Kids, Crack Rock, Pink Matter, Lost. I also like the colour Orange, so there's that. 8/10

What an amazing album. Potentially the best production of all time. What a masterpiece of flow, storytelling and downright deliciousness. Carried me through the last few years

I really enjoyed this album especially with other artists contributions such as Andre 3000 and Earl Sweatshirt. The songs sounded very relaxed and had a sound that is unique to Feank Ocean.

I knew nothing going in on this listen. While it is not something I personally would listen to, he has undeniable talent - his craftsmanship, emotional range, and sonic choices are clearly intentional and refined.

I lived in the Fairfax during a lot of the Odd Future hype. And in some part, it transformed the neighborhood in irrevocable and kinda bad ways, (including running out decades-old businesses because the leases got so damn high on account of the trendiness brought in part by that hype). So I hold the output that came from all that desolation of the Fairfax I loved for two decades against really bright light. I mean, if it means that because of some label hype and new fad storefronts I can't enjoy the best Sicilian slice in LA at Damiano's anymore it better be worth it. RIP Mr. Pizza. So yeah, you got me: I'm a little jaded. I first head Frank Ocean on Jay-Z and Fuckhead's "No Church in the Wild" and I was really impressed by the verses he sang on that piece: the phrasing and especially the lyrics were provocative, heretical, and pretty punk rock. That said, this was made for someone, but it was not me. It was likely 100% eaten up by some of those kids wearing $95 t-shirts posting weird pix up on Tumblr and skateboarding up the street from where I lived though. There are a couple standout tracks, and I can definitely appreciate breaking with the conventions inherent in popular R&B here. It's coloring outside the lines and that part of it is great. However, being it's not my preferred genre at all, I was never gonna really like this. Or at least put it into any kind of regular rotation. However, it did last the exact time—to the second—it took me to edge, blow, and mow the front lawn, so I'm grateful no other free time was taken up with the assignment. Even still, I would almost say I could have died without hearing this, but I did genuinely enjoy the lyric "If it brings me to my knees, It's a bad religion" as much as the aforementioned verses on "No Church In The Wild." "Crack Rock" hit me as kinda funny, even though it's not probably supposed to. PS perhaps I'm being pedantic, but although "Pyramids" was pretty fun lyricplay and sounds like a certified club banger, it's super misinformed to equate the image of a dark-skinned African queen with a Macedonian/Greek descendent of Ptolemy who was probably her darkest when her olive ass got a sunburn. (Okay, not pedantic - no apologies, I was an anthropology major in college. Deal with it Frank. [And get your facts straight]).

Creative - what else can I say? 3 stars.

1 stern

Typical modern R'n'B. It was good

Had listened to this many times before but its not his best album

Gawd, this album is, like... Such a vibe, y'know? Such a damn pretty-ass vibe. And I've tried about three or four times to write a review/babble about this album past that thought, and I haven't had much luck in getting too far, 'coz, like... Honestly, this strikes me as one of those albums where words alone would fail to do it justice? Y'know, nothing I say could compare to listening to it yourself and hearing just what exactly it has on offer. The closest point of comparison I have to this album is, like, another one that's heavily themed around orange: Tyler, The Creator's FLOWER BOY (or SCUM FUCK FLOWER BOY, if you're fun). FLOWER BOy evokes a lot of what CHANNEL ORANGE did, and, like... Y'know, I thought I liked FLOWER BOY a lot — not as much as I did IGOR, but either way. But this stuff? CHANNEL ORANGE? Oh, this is another level altogether. This is "float away and drift" music, where you get all in your feelings and such. It's just— every song is so damn pretty. They're all **so good**. There's not a dud in the lot. And, y'know, normally I wanna temper myself when I'm talking about an album; throw in a thing like, "Let's be clear; it's didn't **blow my mind**..." But, no, as I'm writing this review and thinking back on the album, I honestly think it did? Like there had been something missing in my music listening and I didn't even realize it until now? Something that not even, like, Stevie Wonder or Prince or any of the other similar artists you can point to have been able to fill. And, y'know, I'll give this: I'm gonna act like Frank Ocean is the **best** singer. Is he Stevie; is he Prince? No and no. But for what this is doing... Goodness. I just can't remember the last time I've been this positive about an album from the 2010's, where I wanna gush about it but I've been at such a loss for specific words. Maybe DRUNK by Thundercat? THat's the closest I can think of to where I was like, "Damn, where have **you** been?" But even then, this feels like something else entirely. I'm not even sure how well this review — "review," nah; it's a babble — I don't know how well this babble is gonna come across to anyone else. Y'know, it really has not been all too specific. But it's not **about** the specifics, y'know? It's all in the feeling. Just, what you feel listening to this and the color it might spark in your mind. And this is orange as hell music if there's ever been orange music. Even FLOWER BOY couldn't be this orange. So, y'know, take this babble more on its tone than anything else. This is incredibly good, from start to end. I cannot even begin to stress that enough, nor be able to properly express my confusion at the people who'd consider this to be the "degeneration of music and society." It's just... Yeah. Check the hex code #ff8100, that's the last thing I wanna say. That's how the album feels.

Simply immaculate vibes from this one. Solid 5 Stars.

It’s a 10. When we got Adele’s “21” over a year ago, I said that it might’ve been the album that defined the sounds of the 2010s. That’s partially true, but “Thinkin Bout You”, by itself, rewired the entire landscape. It’s the sound of hip-hop & R&B in the 2010s coming into light, in real time. Sure, Carly Rae Jepsen and Adele and Justin Bieber & whoever else set the tone for pop music of the decade pretty quickly, but this is the blueprint, right here. This became the mold to follow. Everyone hopped into it, old & new alike. It’s the catalyst for the whole decade, and its effects are still felt well into 2025, with a lot of moodier modern pop standards adopting Frank Ocean’s more intimate & vulnerable tone that he takes on the latter stage of this album & fully explores on “Blond”. It’s a consequence of this album taking off into the stratosphere, and for better or worse, I think it really has inspired a generation. Someone else will be able to write the words that I can’t, but this is a truly formative album for me. I don’t remember when it fully hit my radar, but I want to say it was around 2016 or 2017. With each consecutive listen that I gave this thing years ago, I just kept uncovering more & more. Everything from the Stevie Wonder-esque “Sweet Life”, to the slow smooth groove on “Super Rich Kids” (very grateful for the “Real Love” interpolation, by the way), to my first instruction to longer tracks on “Pyramids”, to the undeniable catchiness of “Lost” (took me YEARS & a Breaking Bad watch to get the proper meaning), & the perfect 1-2-3 punch of “Bad Religion”, “Pink Matter” (my introduction to Andre 3000 & subsequently OutKast), and “Forrest Gump” as effectively the final tracks of the album… god, it’s just so so good. I burnt out on this album for a while, so this is the first full listen I’ve given to it in years. Coming back to it with a lot of the wisdom I didn’t have opens the album up even more, and even on this listen, I found myself catching little subtleties that my brain just glossed over. The writing is a bit dated to 2012, but even then, I can’t really find any faults in it. It’s much more aligned to societal complaints & gripes as opposed to Frank Ocean’s more soul-baring stuff, but that’s partially why I prefer this to “Blond”. It's also because this just aligns a little more with my pop-influenced brain. They’re both great, great albums though. I know, I know – this album’s success & all the artists it inspired has opened up a Pandora’s Box of sorts, and if you want to blame Frank Ocean for a sea of mediocrity that may have emerged from the people who were inspired by this album (but without the talent to match it), then go ahead. Does he deserve it, though? Absolutely not. It is not Frank Ocean’s fault that the people inspired by him, for the most part, couldn’t quite capture the same magic. It’s why people still want him back; hell, it’s why I still want him back. I know the circumstances surrounding another Frank Ocean album make it kind of unlikely, but if it ever does happen… everyone’s ready & waiting, and I do mean everyone. As far as “channel ORANGE” goes though, it’s very obviously a 10 to my ears. It’s a formative album to my musical tastes & sensibilities, and probably one of the most impactful records I can think of in my lifetime.

dull, nothing special, dont see the hype at all

Emotional and moving alternative R’n’B. Frank Ocean’s control of orchestration and lyricism is unparalleled.

I really like the slightly jarring sound effects in the intro and at the start and end of Fertilizer for framing the lush musicality of the other tracks; wonderful musical palate cleansers. The mother's interlude is certainly more entertaining than on Blonde as well. My favourite track has to be Super Rich Kids. Great work from Earl Sweatshirt. The driving piano is so pretty and works so well as a platform for all the other sounds to sit upon. Pilot Jones and Pyramids don't really do it for me quite as much; or indeed the second half of the album as a whole.

pretty good album, once I got into it and was able to pick out the actual songs. I guess, I don't like this style much. Someone needs to explain to me why this won Grammys though.

I have definitely given this a whirl back in the day when it was P4k’s best album of whatever Deeply not my thing, lots of lounge R&B stuff. Second side is 100% better, hated first few

Really impressed with this, only criticism is it could have been slightly shorter with the track Pyramids disrupting the flow due to it's length.

7/10 This is a funny old album. It felt like a bit of a pick and mix at the beginning and the interstitial pieces didn’t really bring much to the party, but boy does this grow as it goes. Honestly, if you’d had started at Super Rich Kids, I think I would be ranking this much higher. Albums with little micro-tracks and interstitials can sometimes work really well, like in ArchAndroid by Janelle Monae, where they tie the concept of the album together, or in Boards of Canada albums where they just add little musical flourishes, but here, I think they don’t necessarily add much to the overall feel of the album. His voice is like cream in places, although there were times (particularly Thinking Bout You) where the vocal line didn’t work for his voice. There were also quite a few moments where his voice was way too dominant in the mix, but I think that’s probably due to the hip-hop production style. First time I listened through, there were bits that I liked, but on the second listen, I really started to groove with it, especially during the second half of the record. I think there’s a *really* good 35 minute album in here. But he released a 55 minute one, which just drags it down for me. Start - It’s an intro. Like he pocket dialled when turning on his arcade machine. Thinking Bout You - The verses have a nice groove, but I cannot gel with his falsetto in the chorus on this at all. Sounds so thin and forced. Fertilizer - The snippet of tune here is actually quite good, but I don’t really get the point of it. Sierra Leone - This has some potential, but it doesn’t really seem to settle on an idea until half way through, and then it’s over too quickly. Sweet Life - It feels like we’re getting into the swing of things now. The lead vocal is oddly high in the mix and the rest of the track gets a little bit lost because of it, which is a shame. Otherwise, this is a good one. Not Just Money - This interstitial seemed to actually have a bit more of a point to it, particularly followed up with the next track, but it was also hard to hear what was being said. Super Rich Kids - Another good track. His vocal is definitely at its best here. A good blend of hip-hop and Neo soul, and a nice juxtaposition between the very staccato rhythm and the smooth vocal during the sung parts. Pilot Jones - The falsetto sounds a bit better here. Again, there are elements of this that I really like, but it does seem to build momentum that then drifts away a little too much. Crack Rock - I liked this one too. A nice groove, but I didn’t feel like it added enough variety to different sections of the song. Pyramids - I really love some of the stuff in this track. Went a bit ‘dance floor rave synth’ in the middle, which I was less keen on. But as a whole, this was pretty strong for a ~10 minute track. Lost - This is a great track. A good groove, smooth vocals and all tied together with really nice instrumentation. White - Nice little instrumental. Not much to write about, in reality. Monks - I liked this one too. A little disjointed in places, but it was decent enough. Bad Religion - This is a great track. Soulful, a powerful vocal, a solid groove and plenty of dynamic in the backing. Really good. Pink Matter - Another good one. Again, a powerful, soulful vocal. The bass slaps (literally) in this one too. The track (minus the vocal) sounds a bit like it was pulled together from some Prince deep cuts, or something from The Plant Life. Like it. Forrest Gump - Another nice one. Perhaps a bit less interesting than some of the preceding tracks, but it’s not bad at all. End - A little drift away from the tail end of the album. Worked as a closer.

I've always pretended to like this album more than I really do. It's good! But not that remarkable to me

No, no y definitivamente NO!!!. No encuentras música, pero sirve para otra gente, bueno, eso para mí es un misterio.

Man I’ve had a rough weekend. This sucked, the music is bland and uninteresting while also being super thin, his vocals bordered on hellish multiple times, it went on forever despite all of this. Ok it wasn’t actually that long but I didn’t like it at all.

good

I’ve tried a few times with this album. It’s just not for me. It’s not terrible, just not my style.

Pure bliss from a raw talent that we may never see again.

A genuine favourite (alongside Blond). I am truly in the ‘Frank is a genius’ camp and can’t wait for more music from him one day at long long last, but if he never makes another song then I’m ok with that too because the ones he’s done are perfect and nothing can take that away. Started listing favourite tracks but there’s too many. Pyramids and Lost are particular all timers though. All round effortlessly cool and smooth and funky and easy to listen to.

Ugh. No me gusta~

I decided to listen to this album on Friday as I didn't have much time. The inclusion of the classic PS1 startup sound in the intro hooked me in. A few songs in, I got the hype surrounding Frank Ocean. There's so much to like about "Channel Orange". The skits aren't bad either. 4 stars for "Channel Orange".

This was a tough listen for me. It feels like every song drifts aimlessly, lacking any real grit or emotion. I can’t quite pin down the genre, but whatever it is, it just doesn’t resonate. The tracks feel thin and uninspired.

Banger of course. Haven't listened to Frank in a while.

Типичная современная попса, которая играет в магазине, меня не впечатлило

Nice vocals, good production. Perfectly pleasant, just a bit bland.

Apparently Frank Ocean is the 120th most streamed artist on Spotify at the moment. Absolute dog shit. Not the worst album I've heard, but definitely a 1 starrer.

Ok. Not my thing. The occasional clever turn of phrase made me say "oh, nice one" but in honesty by track 7 or 8 all I could think about was the music I'd rather be listening to.

Nope I remember the hype surrounding Frank Ocean and his late night closing set at a festival about ten years ago. Was genuinely interested to see him - he was boring. Just him and a music box of some sort on stage tinkering and making random sounds. Came into this album with an older and opener mind. Came away thinking it sounds like half finished thoughts spliced into some mediocre music. Maybe listening to the new Andrew 3000 will make my day better

Smooth, great singer. Shouldn’t have waited so long to listen to this one.

Pretty good

I really didn't think this album was that strong. I liked the general vibe and some of the synth "riffs" were definitely catchy. Not unpleasant to listen to, but nothing groundbreaking here from Frank, at least to me.

Favorites: Suoer Rich Kids, Bad Religion, Pilot Jones. “If models were made for modeling than thick girls were made for cuddling”

Classic, a must listen.

Mu fácil de escuchar, aunque un poco aburrido. Lo curioso es que el álbum me recuerda al color azul

Start n/a Thinkin Bout You 2.4 Fertilizer n/a Sierra Leone 2.7 Sweet Life 2.8 Not Just Money n/a Super Rich Kids 2.5 Pilot Jones 2 Crack Rock 3 Pyramids 2.6 Lost 2.4 White 2 Monks 2.4 Bad Religion 2.5 Pink Matter 2.3 Forrest Gump 1.6 End 1.8 Score: 2.357142857

I get this was incredibly ahead of its time, and you can hear its influence on much of modern pop (The Wknd) but it only coalesces into an actual song from time to time. Is that an issue?

Such a vibe listening to this album today. Incredible songwriting, the lyricism was on point and tackled a variety of topics big and small. Maybe I’ll regret this later, but . . . 5 stars

This is the kind of album that could just be the most basic, boring, and enjoyable of all listens. Its chill vibes could take over and lend itself to a lack of creativity and just go along with the flow. But I think Frank here does an excellent job of going apart from this and still using exciting fun sounds and using a creative theme via the “challenge orange” to express what he’s trying to say musically. These choices are what elevate Frank and his music above the other R&B pop artist of our generation. That being said this is no Blonde and the genre as a whole isn’t really my preference but I can recognize its objective quality.

Yeah. Im starting to get it

Een van mijn lievelingsalbums! Ja ik heb er veel. Maar bijna elk nummer op dit album is 10/10. "Pink Matter" is waarschijnlijk mijn fave.

Amazing vibe but the songs didn't stick with me.

The vibes of this are absolutely great. Really solid stuff, not a ton I'd maybe listen to regularly, but just solid.

I feel like this could've been a 5 if it came to me at the right point in my life. I've got a huge soft spot for earnestness in music and this has a lot of it. Plus the production value and all of the guests is awesome.

Some very smooth neo-soul/alt R&B vibes to make love to.

I knew about Frank Ocean before but had never heard a single song. Really enjoyed this. It kinda fell off toward the end, but for most of it, the vibes were immaculate.

What can I say, this is one of the R&B GOATs. The songs are ear candy, with some incredibly evocative storytelling if you care to dig deeper. And I just have to mention my love for the ending track, the sound design just puts you straight into that scene, and there's something about it that makes it a comforting, if bittersweet, end to the album. I remember it taking me a while to get into his music, so had this been my first listen, it might have been rated lower. By now though, I have had many years and memories with it, and it deserves nothing but the fattest of 5s. Standouts: Sierra Leone, Sweet Life, Pyramids, Lost

When this album first came out, I was in middle school. It was like nothing I usually listened to, but everyone was telling me I absolutely must give it a try. At that time it washed over me without leaving an impression. Listening again, I was definitely able to have a greater appreciation than before. Several tracks were real standouts and I especially enjoyed the addition of John Mayer. However, I still don't understand the heaps of praise showered on this album and I don't think Frank said or did anything profound here.

modern classic baby

This was so hyped in 2012/2013 that even an exhausted, overwhelmed 30-something father of two toddlers torrented it off Limewire and spent a week trying to see what all the fuss was about. Listening to it again over a decade later, I feel the same way I did then. Frank Ocean is obviously talented. There are moments throughout this self-indulgent way-too-lightly-edited mess that really shine. But why listen to a loose unedited bunch of ideas that could have made a masterpiece of an album if someone had put in the work instead of a finished product? Frank Ocean should have come around in the age when gatekeepers would’ve made him compromise his artistic vision to give the people what they actually want. Berry Gordy or Clive Davis would have turned this from a collection of brilliant ideas to an album full of hits. Still, props to the guy for having it. If you can’t hear that he’s undeniably got the goods, I don’t know what to tell you.

Pretty good.

To the reviewer who said “This music is the soundtrack for the beginning of the degeneration of music and society as a whole…” etc: how you gonna put that on Frank Ocean. I’m absolutely baffled. You don’t have to like his music, but to say the logical outcome of the musical industry after this is Takashi 69 is just batshit insane. Now that’s out of the way, this isn’t 100% my cup of tea, but on the right day, it 100% is. It starts with the boot up sound from a PS1, so points for nostalgia. Followed by Thinkin Bout You, which is an earworm if I’ve ever heard one. I enjoy that this is basically sad boy r&b which I didn’t know was ever a thing before i originally heard this album. “You know I’m something of a sad boy myself”

I personally enjoyed "Pyramids" in this album. Out of all the longer songs I've listened to, I would put this near the top of the list.

WOW.

I had previously heard of Frank Ocean but was not familiar with any music. This album was a pretty big surprise to me. I didn't know what to expect, but this was really interesting. There is a lot going on but the music itself is also really good. I feel like I need repeated listens to really get everything this album has to offer. Would definitely listen again.

Liked it less than I thought I would, because it felt really disjointed and didn't really catch me until the last few songs. But, Frank sure can sing.

I really love this album. I’ve heard of Frank Ocean, but wasn’t familiar until recently. I like this album better than Blonde, which is also great. But Channel Orange was refreshing and fun.

There's a consistent chill feel to the whole album. Great background music.

Very nice… Crack Rock

Not my Type of music at all. I enjoyed 1/2 songs

Not for me

Drake kinda vibes mixed with kid cudi and Chris Brown (💩). Kinda meh, uninspiring and standard modern R&B. Just nothing really to it, kinda empty, samey and whiney but nice to be reminded of ‘Super Rich Kids’ but even that kinda flat. Not sure what I’m missing in the “critically acclaimed” and “visionary” but not getting that at all. Enjoyed ‘White’ but probably mainly down to John Mayer. Quite liked ‘Monks’ Again, can dig the backing, but voice just meh/detracting. (2.5)

I like it. I really do. But he gets way more love than he should. Half of this album is amazing. Half of it is fine. The interludes are not necessary. I still like it a lot, but I just don’t love it. Even if I almost tried to cover “thinkin bout you” once for some dumb reason.

Channel Orange is kind of all over the place — R&B? Rap? Pop? I honestly don’t know what box to put it in, and maybe that’s the point. Genre confusion aside, it’s a solid album with a lot of ambition. Mad respect to Frank Ocean for pulling in big names like Andre 3000 and John Mayer — both features were definite highlights. There are a few standout tracks that really hit, but there are also some that felt a little too laid back or experimental for me to stay fully engaged.

Holy fuck this is one of the worst albums I've ever heard.

Music that sounds like done better in some other records, like it only belongs in the background, and half the time made me wonder if my sound system is broken.

Solid but not my top tier. "Sweet Life" and "Pyramids" are excellent songs, and the rest of the album ranges from decent to good.

Good but felt a bit bland after a while.

“Commercial R&B has been an extremely important genre for young black women since the 1980s, but because it doesn’t speak to me directly, it’s terrible” - every goddamn review on this website

LOVE

I enjoyed most of it, but not really my cup of tea. Seems to be very popular with critics.

Cue my 15 year old self singing Thinkin Bout You in the shower. Fire… absolutely fire…

kudos to franks dog Everest who is credited as the exec producer 👏👏

i like this one, but it doesn’t hold a candle to Frank in the Oldie music video ❤️

Orange is my favorite Channel

I used to lay up at night waiting for them to free earl Fav song: Pyramids

Been listening to this over the years and its one of my faves. The dissection of the song pyramids just shows how many layers of theory, idea forming and consideration is taken on the longest track of the album. That thing with the notes being lined up on the ledger being shaped like pyramids to make up the bass line of the track, insane.

Really cool album - added multiple songs to my playlists and really liked the production.

Finally I have the chance to hear this guy - listened thru twice I guess he is all that - one needs to listen to a frank ocean album from start to finish to get a real feel, I liked it!! Lots to say but no more space

This debit album was crazy critically acclaimed. I must be obtuse because I found this boring and uninspiring. I didn’t connect with any one song. Most of this sounds the same. The songwriting is awful. It sounds like a dumb person trying to sound intelligent. I don’t get it..

This isn’t my thing. It didn’t have a point of view that connected with me. It felt bland and predictable.

Just cool. Unbounded musicality. Appreciated more than fully connecting.

8/10 Best tracks: Sweet Life, Pilot Jones, Pyramids

Listened to it before, amazing love Frank to death

This was fine. I like Frank Ocean's voice and the beats are fun but sometimes it drones on and on and I wish the songs would GO somewhere. Hes a really good singer and producer, but I'd just like the songs to do something new. Actual rating...2.5 Liked Songs: "Sierra Leone" , "Sweet Life" , "Pilot Jones" , "Pyramids" , "Lost" , "Monks" , "Bad Religion"

liked songs: Sierra Leone, Sweet Life, Lost, Monks, Bad Religion I wasn't optimistic during Thinking About You, but the next few songs are very harmonically interesting. R&B definitely isn't my favorite genre, but this album held my interest for the most part. 3

One of my all time favourite albums. Glad I get to listen to it again! Easiest 5 stars so far

I listened to this when it first came out. His lyrics are kind of cringe but it’s mostly decent

Belle découverte

i will never understand my peers’ hype for this album. good but not a goat

#602. What do you get when you mix a bad rapper, a bad singer, and a bad musician? Frank Ocean, apparently. 2/5: alternately bad and boring.

Hyped modern r&b crap

I get why people were obsessed with this album, it's pretty solid! I probably won't listen to it again though

I was an odd future kid, so I've been playing Super Rich Kids and Crack Rock for over a decade now. No stranger to Frank's vocals, as I have loved his features over the years as well. I haven't listened to channel ORANGE all the way through since college probably, and so I was definitely due to give it another spin finally. There's for sure a sense of nostalgia attached to this album now, not to mention a lot of the jazz sounds already add to that nostalgia. Frank is a A STRONG, stunning vocalist, and I feel like this album was absolutely a pivotal and necessary step for the otherworldly stunner that Blonde would be. Frank was really getting to know himself on this thing and I think this was a proper introduction to these more realized modern jazz-rnb vibes as he was never exclusively a rapper. He's just SMOOTH as fuck and that is the Ocean modus operandi. The features are fucking great. While there are not a ton of features, they are equally super strong. Production is mostly quite warm with beautiful keys, strings, percussion as well, often keeping things pretty lowkey so the vocals can really take precedent. Like are they the best instrumentals ever? Not necessarily- but they serve as a palette for Frank to bring a fresh new bag to the table and he sure did.

An impressive display of potential more than anything, I still think this gets overshadowed by Ocean’s following album.

I’m not a huge R&B fan, but once I got to the middle of the album I was liking the instrumentation, and it was less about needing to focus on the words in order to enjoy it. I probably need to listen again to give a more informed review.

Decent. Nothing I'd rush to go back to, but nothing dragged too much.

hotdog water strikes again

BANGER

Some decent parts, some weaker parts. Probably need to listen to it more to offer an informed opinion.

🔥🔥

This was a nice chill listen. Sweet Life, Thinkin About You, and Pyramids all stood out to me, along with a couple great features. Would be interested to hear more.

I love this album. Smooth, calm, while the lyrics are anything but. Great album.

It’s got like 3 good songs and the rest I don’t care for. What does that make - an OK album, maybe good-ish?

probs 3.5+ but i rounded it up not my vibe but had some fire songs like lost

In my view, there are three indispensable artists from the 2010s: Kendrick Lamar, who is still very much a cultural force, Chance the Rapper, whose Acid Rap greatly endures but who fell off thereafter, and Frank Ocean, w/ a minimal output that redefined experimental R&B. Ocean is the inevitable continuity of Marvin Gaye's workaday confessionals and social awareness, Stevie Wonder's melodic ingenuity, and Prince's casual, yearning sexuality. Whether he's singing about beach houses in Idaho, rich kids on suicidal roofs, or crack rock, crack rock, he incorporates heavy details into an aura that is at once existentially urgent and playfully tongue in cheek. 'You run my mind, boy / Runnin' on my mind, boy.' I'll never forget those words.

It's not usually my thing, but listening objectively this is a really good record. Found the over use of soul vocal runs a little tiring and didn't love all the lyrics, particularly uncomfortable with Bad Religion... but beyond that it's a great performance with excellent musicianship and incredible production. Listen to Pyramid with good headphones, it's an experience. Also, Andre 3000's guitar solo, fuck me!

The Good: We’ve got Orange! The Bad: It has nothing to do with The Netherlands… The Ugly: Seems that there are people who can see colors while listening to music… I call those people charlatans Never heard of Frank Ocean. Read the Wiki page, and now I am an expert in Frank Ocean… while my memory last regarding this expertise… what were we talking about? There are plenty of comments about how one can hear the influences of a Stevie Wonder and Prince, and I agree. However, and here’s where my ears started to shut down, I also noticed that the period which is similar for Stevie Wonder and Prince is the period where most people stopped listening to Stevie Wonder and Prince. Did I like it? No. Did I hate it? No. Will I listen to it again? Maybe, by accident, as I will be removing the memory of this album from grey matter. 2 1/2*

Sounds like Kanye's ramble singing

This dude is not without talent, but many of the songs just seem to meander off into space with no real direction. The stream of consciousness lyrical style wears thin after awhile too. It's my first time listening to Ocean. It's decent enough I might be willing to check out more from in the future. But this particular album is a one and done for me. 2.5/5 Album 75/1001

Håpte eg skulle lika da bedre egentlig. Pyramids e feit

Only knew Blonde and the singles, so it was a nice discovery

Ehhhhhhhh Highlights: Pyramids

Enjoyed the vocal layering, and experimental sound. Questionable lyrics a lot of the time- a lot sound like stories eg. Pyramids rather than personal experience or viewpoints but who knows, got a bit bored of all the sexual themes and misogyny. Overall interesting sounds, sometimes found the vocals a bit droning, sometimes loved them, same goes for the whole album. I think I’d prefer a song at a time listen from Frank Ocean rather than a whole album. Favourites: Thinking bout you, Pyramids, lost, Forrest Gump.

I can’t tell if he hates women or just thinks he’s better than the women he sings about, but every woman mentioned in this album is objectified, even Cleopatra’s worth is reduced to the men she sleeps with. I kept listening because I had heard such great things about this album, but good production doesn’t rescue this one for me

Great Album but he has better 3.8/5

This was good. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

i loveeee frank ocean! i might prefer blonde to channel orange but god this is such a good album! His voice and the instruments are just smooooth (in a good way) and some of these songs just have a timelessness about them! I don’t LOVE every song but think as a whole listening experience it is excellent! Also think so many of these songs feel like they belong on a gossip girl episode Songs I love: Sweet life SUPER RICH KIDS (magnolia parks you will always have my heart!) Pilot Jones Monks LOSTTTT <3

classic 4-4.5

Yes yes yes

Meh

Interesting. I enjoyed most of it

Liebs

Some decent songs almost 4

This was a rollercoaster I started by liking it, then went down a little but then picked up to the point where I will give it another listen later,

Not horrible, but not for me either.

2/10

I’ve heard a lot about his talent so was interested, but I found this to be a snooze fest. R’n’b tends to bore me and this was no exception.

It was okay background music and mostly forgettable.

And with just one album, I have already listened to 50% of Frank Ocean's entire studio album discography. It's a shame. Frank Ocean's a talented guy, and Channel Orange is proof of this. I really like this album! There's a lot to say here with this album. I feel like my reviews as of lately haven't dived into specifics about each individual album as much. Maybe I'm just starting to feel the exhaustion of listening to nearly 600 albums at this point, but I feel like a solid chunk of my reviews as of lately could be interchangeable with each other. Let's avoid that issue with Channel Orange by talking about the specifics. I think the album has a pretty neat concept. The lyrical themes of love, sex, and longing are explored in very interesting ways. I think that's what makes this album appeal to me over other 2010s r&b artists. A lot of that stuff lacks substance in my eyes. I am using this as an opportunity to inform you all that I fucking hate Chris Brown. However, the songs on Channel Orange are meaningful and some of them are even stories. Let's get into some songs, shall we? "Thinkin Bout You" is a strong, chill opener that sets up the album pretty well. "Super Rich Kids" has great writing and good production. I mean, that applies to the whole album, but this song is a great example of that. I love long-ass songs, when they're done well of course. I have a whole playlist of them on Spotify. So, of course, I adore "Pyramids." It's probably the album's best song. The allusions to Cleopatra tell a captivating two-part story about a prostitute. The production on this one's amazing as well. I don't really need to address all of the songs. I just wanted to highlight a few specific ones. Frank Ocean's singing is quite good. The features are all great, with André 3000 on "Pink Matter" being the highlight for me. The pacing is excellent. I just really like this album. The fact that its followup, Blonde, is apparently better makes me really excited to listen to it eventually. It's not on the album list, but I'm sure I'll set away some time eventually to listen to it. Still, Channel Orange is an outstanding debut album. Not the best of all time, but quite a strong showing. High 4/5.

This is a great album that I think I will have to give repeated listens to as there is a lot to unpack

Listened many times before, love as always

This rating makes me feel like such a ⬜. The intro pulled me in like we were old friends vibing in the basement. Then we just... never left the basement. His voice is pure sex, but Pyramids was the first time I noticed any changeup. Why see the world when you've got the beach? If I were high or rolling this be an easy 6. But sober? I stand by my rating

i re-listened to it as if didn’t know it by heart 4,5/5 🍊

Okay, time to write this without letting any nostalgia or deep emotional connection to this album get in the way. For the moment. Let's review the non-interlude tracks which ultimately serve the purpose of making this album feel like you're flicking through radio stations (a fantastic companion album to QOTSA's which does the same). Thinkin Bout You is a straight-down-the-middle, stripped back R&B anthem, and has served Sunday Seshes, UE Booms on the beach and Cafes alike for 13 solid years now. Frank strains his voice a bit in the falsetto, but that's ultimately part of his sounds, and he pulls it off well. Sierra Leone is a hilarious lo-fi ballad about getting yo baby momma up the duff when you're a teenager. Fantastic bass line on this one, and the vocal harmonies are fantastic. Sweet Life is definitely one of the more refined tracks on here, though despite the groovy bassline and Rhodes piano accompaniment, one can hear incriminatingly N.E.R.D. style jazz chords played on synth horns in the background which Pharrel has obviously contributed. Tyler was also using these sounds a lot around the Wolf/Goblin album era which coincides with this record. Super Rich Kids follows largely the same theme, and nowadays I can't say it's too impressive track, but Earl's MF Doom level of syllable-matching is impressive over a beat like this. Pilot Jones used to be my least favourite song on the album. Frank's falsetto is annoying here, but the unique beat tides you over into the first verse, where things get better. The coda is the best part of this track. Actually... it still might be my least favourite, but I don't hate it like I used to. Then you have the sound effect of a plane landing which rumbles into the intro of.... Crack Rock, which is one of the BEST songs ever made in this genre. This is a spiteful condemnation of a former friend/lover who's gone off the rails on the rock. Frank's laid-back vocals at the start are quickly accompanied by lush harmonies. It's in the last 90 seconds of the song Frank shifts into top gear and delivers a scathing "how's the gutter doing?" while singing in his voice, one whose timbre you could not confuse with someone else's. I love this song. Pyramids... man... You get 3 insane instrumentals, the last one comprising "part two" of this track which also coincides with the halfway point in the album's runtime, as Nights does in Blonde. I probably wouldn't adore this song the way I do if I had no sentiment toward it. Lost is an inoffensive song off this album I've always enjoyed, but only so much. It's a great "show Frank Ocean to someone" track, but that's about it. White is fine... but to really understand this song you need to listen to the version with vocals on the Odd Future Tape, Vol. 2, where Frank delivers possibly the most charming and vulnerable verse of his career. This version is just John Mayer noodling on the geeetar. Monks, another track I used to hate. It's a groovy attempt at funk, but his bridge still just annoys me here, but the coda saves it with some very charming vocals. Bad Religion, aka I just got rejected by my first high school crush: the song. That is, until I realised it was about a dude. Anyway. This is probably the vocal climax of the album. It's a gorgeous, introspective conversation with his (islamic) taxi driver, grappling with unrequited love. I used to belt this fucking thing in the car at age 17. Still would if you gave me enough beers and a piano. Pink Matter, a horny but brilliant track about wanting to not wear a Johnny and bang your Sensei. Jokes aside, do you know how good an artist you have to be to have ANDRE 3000 agree to do a verse on your album? The bass line, like many on this album is just class. I love this track and it's probably the most frequently on rotation still to this day. Forrest Gump I've never been huge on, but I guess Frank needed a chance to tell the world he's gay and... here you go. Phew, now to talk about how I fucking LOVE THIS ALBUM. This, along with 2-3 albums (none of which were Drake, thank god) carried me from ages 13 to 19. As the years went on, different tracks became my favourites, starting from Pyramids and Lost, then to Super Rich Kids and Bad Religion (hope you're well, Emily) then to Crack Rock, and back to Pyramids. Blonde is a great album, but it wasn't there for me the whole time like this record was. The only reason I ever started enjoying singing was this album burnt to a CD, on my Ps, going up the highway to visit my folks. I wouldn't be the same person without this album. It's not the best work of its type, not even the best work by Frank, but it's so unbelievably important to me and I will cherish it as long as I live.

Ahh yes, I remember forcing myself to like this to try and get pussy in high school. The litmus test of any potential mate for a teenage girl in 2012-2015 is how tolerant you are to Frank Ocean. In my case, very. Unfortunately I was too intensely interested playing in Garry's Mod role-play servers in those years to pursue a girl. Not even gonna bother listening to this for the 1000th time before writing this review. This is the GOAT of neo-soul. A perfect album. This was a staple of year 10-12 in high school, so I'm not even going to deny the bias. I am shocked that this was included here, usually the writer of this book seems to skip all the important modern albums. No need for a long ass review, this is the defining album of neo-soul. Even if you don't like it, this album deserves its spot in the history books. I'd argue this album would make it pretty comfortably in the top 150~ albums of all time, objectively.

In a bit of a perplexed spot for this album. It sounds fairly good but was also just very dull, I found myself let it wander off from what I was focusing on quite a bit. Some of the really outspoken reviews for this would have you think Frank Ocean shot their dog, I can't see myself getting that worked up over this album one way or another. Chalk it up to me being a socially stunted weirdo but the strongest reaction I had to this whole thing was wondering why the fuck someone would play Street Fighter II on the PS1

Music for the women who were painfully aware of Drake's behaviour pre-kendrick-feud.

Music for annoying hyperactive closeted gay guys. Frank Ocean benefits from being the best in class in what is a fundamentally dreadful genre that is contemporary R&B. A genre so far removed and bastardised from its original incarnation that it does an disservice to the original genre to given group them remotely together. Channel Orange is undoubtedly competently made. It creates a mood and atmosphere and a sense of world and narrative that is genuinely impressive. Thinking bout you, pyramids, Forrest Gump and Lost if you're feeling generous are great songs. But there's a lot of bloat. If this is your jam power to you, I'd love to hear why you enjoy contemporary R&B, genuinely. I just can't help but escape the feeling that this is the genre popularised by a society and a culture that would rather read the Wikipedia entry for a book then the book itself. Unironically good album tho, just hate the genre. 7/10

A comprehensive and varied album experience, excellent output from all involved on this collective effort. Very consistent theming and tone, maintains a strong bisexual energy throughout. This does feel like the work of an art collective with the creative lead and vision of Frank Ocean and the producer Malay. Having said all of this, I find myself unable to fully enjoy and interface with this album. The genre here is not quite in my wheelhouse, which usually has not been a problem for me during this project however, due to a number of personal reasons I will not get into in this review I find it very difficult to wholly enjoy this album especially the track Pyramids. Highlights - Thinkin Bout You, Sweet Life, Pink Matter

Maybe it’s just nostalgia, but this album is so bloody good.

Man, idk. Boring ass album, mostly sex songs there. Didn't even listen fully, I just can't listen to that crap. Cringy songs for tiktok. Saved songs: 1/17

channel ORANGE had a hill to climb before my ears wrapped themselves around Ocean’s debut album. Truth be told, and whilst I have become more receptive to albums and genres that haven’t been my first choice (see: Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly and Nas’s Illmatic receiving five [5] star reviews on my RYM), R&B in its entirety just isn’t my cup of tea. And whilst I had previously acquainted myself with Lost, the rest of the album remained a mystery. Unfortunately, that aforementioned hill was one simply too tall to climb for this to be anything greater than what the rating suggests. Whilst there are some golden moments on this track, like Lost, Thinkin Bout You and Bad Religion, the rest of the album feels like more of a miss, than a hit. Three interlude type beats within the first seven songs? No thank you. Whilst this isn’t the worst album I have ever listened to, far from it, it doesn’t stand out enough for me to come back to this. A good debut album, but that’s about it. Three stars.

I really tried to get into this one. Had a lot of good parts but nothing took hold as a whole. Always thought he was a rapper but this is more r and b. Maybe other records of his are better.

Not something I would normally listen to but it was good and had a lot of fun elements that reminded me of albums from when I was young.

Very good chill listen

Jeg elsker når der dukker et 100% velfortjent album fra efter 2010 op. Frank er smød som en rødspætte

Meget diverst og samtidig kun bangers. Virkelig fed produktion, ekstremt gode sange. Pyramids er farligt tæt på at være 10ernes bedste sang.

So underwhelming and boring. I find his singing so forced and so tryhard

Beautiful album

More than anything, this reminds me of R. Kelly, where the performer is so taken with their own vocal and observational prowess that they wander freely - happily - through unmoored melodies, slanted rhymes, and narrow narrative details, leaving me - as a first time listener - completely lost. Similar RnB innovators - from Stevie Wonder, through Prince, via Andre 3000 - will orientate the listener with a definite chorus or a concrete musical idea, some handhold to bring you back to the song, no matter where their creativity takes them. Such things may exist in this album, for the tang of intention is everywhere, but only Frank Ocean knows where they are. Maybe its obvious to his fans or genre listeners, but, after a weekend of listening, I was no more grounded than at the beginning. I think this might be rewarding, if you put the time in, but I'm not made of weekends. Agreed - HD TV is too real. I watched A Comedy of Terrors on my step-father's new HD TV and it was obvious that a stunt double was wearing a Peter Lorre mask during the fight sequence with Vincent Price. Completely ruined it for me. 2.5 I confess to being old enough that my main reference for this sort of R‘n‘B (that is smooth, middle of the road vocalising about sex over airless beats and elevator-ready guitar and bass lines) is Craig David (Craig David). I am not aware whether Craig is still known, never mind popular or respected, among a younger generation but I am aware that Frank Ocean is certainly all of those things. Recently Timothy Chalomet, comparing Frank Ocean to Bob Dylan said that Ocean is ‘The Thinker…guiding us culturally…from up here [tapping his head]’. No one, not even an idiot, ever said anything like this about poor Craig. Truthfully, Craig didn’t even say his own name that much during his songs yet that feature is mainly what he will be remembered for. Well not that much during his hits anyway; to be fair I haven’t yet investigated Craig’s albums but presumably ‘Born to Do It’ will generate at some stage in this project. So why doesn’t Frank Ocean say his own name during his songs? Because Bob Dylan didn’t? The worst part of the album might be when Andre 3000 turns up on Pink Matter and does a ‘clever’ play on Frank‘s name. If Frank Ocean had said ‘Frank Ocean’ a couple of times earlier in the song Andre 3000 might have felt his reference was redundant and left it out. Is Frank Ocean too clever to say his own name? Too much the Deconstructionist? Too much of a cultural leader? On the whole, going by this 13 year old album I’ve never heard any of before this weekend I’d say Frank Ocean is essentially a lobotomised Stevie Wonder. A fair chunk of Channel Orange is four-bar loops of keyboard stabs with Wonderish vocal sophistications on either a base melody that is too mundane to be worth the trouble (Sierra Leone, Sweet Life) or on nothing at all (Pilot Jones, Monks). Instrumental hooks to compare with Stevie Wonder? There aren’t hooks to compare with anyone. Of the albums we have done so far it puts me most in mind of Lost in the Dream; plenty of vibing but very little in the way of original musical ideas. That said, The Thinker does manage to think his way out of not being as asinine as The War on Drugs. Thinkin Bout You, Super Rich Kids, the first half of Pyramids, Lost, and Bad Religion are the backbone of this record. They are all conventional songs; even phrasing over four-bar loops, a couple of verses, three choruses and a bridge. And they aren’t bad. The lyrics, as everywhere else on this album, are lacking. Here are rambling thoughts that frequently, to their credit, rise above the album’s core themes of materialist ennui and ‘titties’, however, there isn’t an ounce of poetry on this album. Frank Ocean, presumably knowing he has at least enough Stevie Wonder in him to shoehorn any old pile of disparate rhythms into a smooth vocal line, fires them out seemingly without a second draft: ‘The jewel of Africa, jewel/ What good is a jewel that ain't still precious?/ How could you run off on me? How could you run off on us?/ You feel like God inside that gold/ I found you laying down with Samson and his full head of hair’ (Pyramids) That sounds like shit to me and I am not singling that out because almost any few lines from this album would have done. The songs still work though I think. There is enough drama and enough striking music in those few tracks to carry a listener through this album’s general aimlessness and indulgence. 2.5/5

Lightweight, kinda sounds like make it up as you go

Long, slow, and pleasant sounding. I don't really like modern r&b but I liked his voice and his beats. This was a good album for a Sunday morning.

Been meaning to listen to this for a long time. Really loved some tracks ("Monks" especially stood out), but others kind of blended together. I'd like to spend more time with it to better absorb the lyrics.

Æ vet æ hørte på den to ganger, og det va en sang der æ har hørt før, men det va tydeligvis ingenting som festa sæ? Æ tror kanskje bare ikke det e for mæ? (Eller så høre æ ikke på musikk på en hensiktsmessig måte for det her prosjektet.)

Pyramids

tough one to rank. the songs that i recognize im kind of sick of, and but the ones i dont still sound good. i can definitely see the integrity of the album. if i were listening to this for the first time it would probably be blowing my mind but it was just so overplayed in high school and i didnt like it in high school. it really is a crazy innovative blend of r&b, hip hop, and pop with great production.. its quality

Probably a good album but since I don’t have any appreciation for this style of music I can’t really say.

Nah

This album is schizophrenic. So many different genres blending together. It's not necessarily bad, but I didn't really care for it.

A little samey but overall I liked it. Suspect it could be worth more listens.

Good

3,5

I always heard positive things about Frank Ocean but never listened to his stuff apart from some collaborations. Now, this album didn't disappoint. I like that he is versatile enough to go through all the different styles even though he sometimes tends to fall into a mumble trap if you will. Also Ocean gets a lot of support by great instrumentation and production. My favourite track might be Pink Matter that features André 3000.

It's not a bad album. The sound is good and Ocean is clearly talented. Some of the songs are inventive, the 10 minute plus is guitar driven for example; others stick to what you might expect from a modern RNB record. It's not for me and I am not qualified to comment on how it sits with contemporary soul. It has been held up as a worthy successor to Stevie Wonder and Prince - it's not that. I listened to it some years ago and yet nothing was familiar.

I didn’t like this album very much but there were a couple tracks I dig

Not my taste.

I couldn't enjoy this what so ever. :( Every song seemed the same and this vibe was not for me.

Quest for getting this album on vinyl still persists. “The only thing we share is the refrigerator” 5/5

This took me a while. I remember trying blond a couple of times and never feeling like I got it. Same here for first couple of listens. But I gave it some more. This is cool. Vocals range from robotic auto tuned through r&b soul then Motown and even some smooth rap. Then the music production is pretty hip hoppy with consistent rhythms and looping melodies and chords, but it’s all with this otherworldly feel. The record kinda feels timeless and modern all at the same time. Four stars for me.

Not my cup of tea, so propably not a fair grade.

This was fine and pretty chill, but there were so many skits/interludes. Some songs were a bit boring (Pilot Jones, White). I think I prefer Blonde.

This kind of bland r'n'b generates real visceral rage in me. I just hate it so much, and I know it's an over reaction I can't quite explain. Maybe it has something to do with the lazy, swagger of the music that it hasn't earned. Maybe it's just the vocals. I dunno, I just hate it.

Interesting sounds

A pretty good album, I liked Pyramids and Lost the most.

This is an all timer. Takes me back to a really good place in my life

A smooth and oddly soothing straight up R&B album compared to some of the more contemporary R&B Frank would move to with his later two albums. The album showcases a huge amount of vocal talent and an eye for writing catchy hooks and meaningful but tongue in cheek lyrics. The lyrical content of this album doesn’t really drift too far from most of the similar music coming out at the time and can sometimes sounds a bit cliché but still managed to stay interesting and often moving. Features are rare but very high quality with a solid verse from the usually elusive Andre 3000, a feat Frank would go on to repeat in 2016, and a really solid link up with fellow Odd Future graduate Earl Sweatshirt taking the spotlight in both their respective tracks. That being said the album drags on a bit and some of the tracks could be cut to make the quality of the rest of the songs stand out. Standout tracks are Thinkin Bout You, Sierra Leone, Super Rich Kids, Crack Rock, Pyramids and Lost. Overall an enjoyable project that hints nicely at the quality of his later music, 3.5/5

I thought this was supposed to be some almighty album wth

5/5

Frank Ocean was a bit of a blind spot for me. I'd heard of him, and probably heard some of his music before without really knowing. I had never sought him out or paid much attention to him, though. Gotta say, I wish I had done so a while ago. Really enjoyed this one musically, really liked the artistry and composition. It felt like an ALBUM, you know? Like it was produced as a cohesive work to be listened to and enjoyed as a whole. The music was diverse, but well done; the rolling drums on Crack Rock transforming into a electronic dream on Pyramids was a good example of just how different the feels could get in a two-song span. The lyrics were loving and harsh, deep and shallow, literal and mystic at different points. Whatever the song called for, they provided. Also, the songs hit. The slow ones were purposeful and meaningful. The more upbeat ones were full of feeling. Some were incredibly simple, others very complex. I can't give him enough credit for bringing the songs to life the way he did. For the negatives, I have to bring it down a bit for the lyrical content despite how strong it was at times. Some of the content just seemed to be bordering on pandering to a lifestyle instead of sticking with the sincerity in the other tracks. The description of the girl we got on Lost, or the girl in Monks, were a bit much for example. It wasn't as over the top as some artists can be, but it still just seemed a little generic. The vibes were definitely geared towards intimacy for listening, so it makes some sense. But it does take away a bit when you're just listening to the album without that setting. The album also felt a long. While of few of the tracks aren't actual songs but bridges between songs, there are still 17 listed tracks running over 55 minutes. I was expecting it to wrap up at one point and saw there were still four songs left. Those last few songs seemed weaker, but maybe that was because I was ready for it to end by that point. Either way, the payoff for continuing to listen wasn't anything special. So, I'd say it's a cohesive album of diverse, well-composed songs with lyrics that range from great to unimpressive. It starts strong, but dwindles toward the end. Even so, it's a very good album. I'll listen to it again. Overall: 4/5

I love a lot of Franks stuff and his peak is amazing but this is genuinely one of the most overrated & over praised albums out there.

5/2/25. Forgot how much of a landmark album this is in my lifetime. Stands on its own in the R&B genre, and all the songs hit. Frank Ocean went above and beyond on this one.

Not really my type of style of music.

Album No. 4 I've heard a lot about Frank Ocean but I've only ever really hear Pink and White (not on this album) and I have been meaning to listen to him. I love the relaxed energy coupled with the nice vocals, it feels very pleasant to listen to and its an overall nice, pretty experimental album. The production is very nice too and creates the sort of ambience the album has. Favourites: - Thinkin Bout You - Sweet Life

You know what? This is pretty good. Better than I expected such a famous pop name to be.

The best song isn’t the single…I love this album. This one is an experience and it only gets better as the album goes along. On my shortlist of albums I wish would be released on vinyl.

Never cared much for Frank Ocean, aware of the fact he's had a lot of hype around his name, especially during the 2010s. I was initially dismissive of the album, but a few of the tracks stood out as R&B hits, especially "Lost". I've actually got that one one replay right now. His voice reminds me a lot of Prince, were Prince to have switched genres.

Frank Ocean's neo-soul is refreshing and features a who's who of producers and special guests including Pharrell Williams, Earl Sweatshirt, Tyler, the Creator, André 3000, and John Mayer. Ultimately Channel Orange deserves the praise it deserves, but I can't find myself coming back to it often.

Again not my cup of tea

I found this to be super whiney and lacking structure. Not my thing.

Run of the mill R &B album. Boring as a beige wall.

Interesting

Im not too familiar with Frank Ocean. Found myself enjoying this album- some of the songs are definite bops. Overall- 3 5/5

Some groovy beats going on here. Not really my type of music and no particular standout track, but I appreciated hearing it and would be happy with more Frank Ocean in the future. I see on Spotify that he's very popular, more than I thought.

It's pretty good. Sometimes his voice is great and sometimes I feel like he's phoning it in, which i guess probably hit hard if you heard this when you were 15. I respect that he went from samples to original beats - the whole thing is tightly focused while exploring a wide variety of sounds in that focus, but this is something I want on in the background - when I listen close I feel like I can either be rewarded or the cracks show up, so a mixed bag.

Not my cup of tea but good, eclectic mix. I liked one or two.

I enjoyed 2 songs out of the 17. Not a fan.

Tried the album and I have never bounced off something so hard

I like conceptual albums like this that include radio station "swapping". Similar to the Weekend's recent album. Sweet Life is a standout for me. I really wanted to like this, but it just isn't quite my style honestly. If there were more satisfying harmonies I think it would've pushed it up a star.

Not liking this much. Very meta and surreal. Great singer, but a lot of the songs are very self indulgent. Sweet Life is an excellent song. Super Rich Kids is good. Pilot Jones is good. Crack Rock is on the nose and depressing, but not terrible. Pyramids is ok. Lost is ok. Think it needs to be a 2.

Wtf no

Love his voice, smooth and silky. The album was okay, nothing outstanding.

Sounded whiney when singing…okish

I just didn't find anything exceptional about this album, and being a genre that isn't typical for me... it was pretty OK

A bit all over the place for me. Lost is a good track that I can listen to multiple times, but the rest of it sort of doesn’t catch my interest.

Fav: Lost Notes: Some bangers. Takes some getting used to

This one grew on me musically, not necessarily lyrically. Forrest Gump being an example. Found myself vibing to the music, then thinking *dafuq?" when digging into the lyric. And, like, Pyramids is about sex workers in Vegas, right? Maybe I'm just projecting. This one's interesting enough to have on the list, but not really my cup of tea.

I was afraid of it. Man, this is horrible music. Having said that, I can understand and acknowledge that this is probably a very fine album in its genre. The instrumentations are fine, carefully and well done. There's even one song that I, no, not like, but can listen to: 'Pyramids'. The absolute horror is 'Thinkin bout you'. And of course, the latter is far more popular that the former...

Channel Orange by Frank Ocean is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums ever made by people who enjoy music that feels like a memory of a swimming pool. It’s an exploration of heartbreak, wealth, and lying very still on a leather sofa while thinking about metaphors. The first track is called “Start,” which is helpful if you’re new to albums and didn’t know where to begin. The title Channel Orange is supposed to represent a colour Frank saw when he was in love, which is strange because most people just see hearts or feel a bit sick. Also, why orange? Oranges are famously the least romantic fruit. They squirt you in the eye and smell faintly of bathroom cleaner. If love feels like that, you might be dating incorrectly. There’s also the television meaning of “channel,” so possibly Frank is suggesting that emotions are like telly, which makes sense, because sometimes you want to change them but the batteries are dead. In summary, Channel Orange is a moving, complicated work of art that reminds us that emotions are confusing, love is sticky, and oranges are difficult to peel unless you’ve got very long nails or a special tool, which nobody ever has because they think they’ll just “use their fingers” and then regret it immediately.

Good but it didn't grab me.

Bores me to tears.

soft and not all that interesting

Not really my jam.

3.5

Pretty good RnB album, surprised I hadn't heard of Frank Ocean before. Right off the bat, Thinkin Bout You was amazing, great song. The rest of the album hits nice with some good RnB, along with a few ok songs. All in all it was a fairly nice listen. Best song: Thinkin Bout You

4.5